Atletico Madrid proved there’s life left in La Liga yet when they knocked Manchester United out of the Champions League at Old Trafford on Tuesday evening, winning the tie 2-1 on aggregate.
Los Rojiblancos had outplayed the Premier League side in the first leg at the Wanda Metropolitano but only managed to come away with a 1-1 draw. Joao Felix had given them the lead only for Anthony Elanga to equalise for United inside the final ten minutes.
But no such equaliser came on Tuesday. This time it was Brazilian wing-back Renan Lodi who scored the decisive goal, scoring a back-post header four minutes before the half-time break.
The result is huge for Atletico given how trying their season has been. Despite their status as La Liga champions they’ve failed to impress and find themselves battling for a place in the top four rather than the title. But now, thanks to a tough and resilient performance, they can dream of European glory.
“Happiness,” was how Diego Simeone summed up his feelings post-match in comments carried by Marca. “A lot of people working to ensure things went well. A lot of people involved to get us out of that irregular moment that we had a month-and-a-half ago that we changed after Osasuna. Above all to see the value of the team; when this team works as a team is excites me.
“We’ve been competitive, not ashamed to play on the back foot and knowing what to do when coming out because we were facing a team with great individuals. The goal that was offside proved to us that we could hurt our rival. The legal goal that came gave us the advantage and the second half saw brilliant collective work, one of the best this season, which leaves me happy.”
